How exactly are opal gemstone rings and earrings valued? This is one question that we often come across on various social media platforms. Well, the value of your opal depends on several different factors, such as its class, body tone, and its play of colour. Other factors that experts consider when valuing your opal engagement ring or opal earrings include brilliance, faults, pattern, and colour bar thickness.
Let’s take these factors one at a time and see how they can affect the value of the best opal gemstone jewellery on Masterpiece Jewellery Australia.
- Opal class
Does the class of your opals have any effect on their values? The simple answer is yes; opal class is one of the few factors that experts consider during the valuation of these gemstones.
Today, opals are available in many classes; light, dark/black, boulder, matrix, and composite opal (doublets & triplets). According to experts, solid opals cost more than composite opal gemstones.
- Speaking of solid opals; black opals have the highest value. High-quality black opal engagement rings or earrings can cost more than $10,000 per carat. These opals have more value because they are very rare to find.
- Boulder opals also have more value than white/light opals. However, they are nothing close to black opals in terms of their value. Boulder opals have a dark body tone, which explains why they are more valuable than light opals.
- Composite doublet and triplet opals have less value because they are very abundant and easily accessible. These assembled gemstone jewellery pieces only contain a thin slice of solid & real opals. Triplets contain even less natural opal than doublets. As such, they are far less valuable than any other class of opals available today on Masterpiece Jewellery.
- Body tone
The body tone of your opal gemstone jewellery is another factor that experts consider during the valuation process. Body tone, also called background colour or base tone, is the relative darkness of the background that contrasts with the play of colour of your opals.
Today, opal body tone is categorized into 9 different levels (N1 to N9). When viewed face-up, black opals often display play-of-colour on a black body tone that complies with N1 to N4. The semi-black opals fall under the N5 to N6 category. As for white opals, when viewed face-up, they fall under the N7 to N9 body tone category.
Bottom line: the body tone of your opals has a lot of effect on their value. Opals with N1 to N4 body tones are the most expensive – they sometimes worth more than $10,000 per carat.
- Play of colour
The play of colour of your opal engagement ring and earrings refers to the optical phenomenon that occurs when light enters your opal and passes through the gaps in-between the silica spheres. As the light enters, they are forced to bend to penetrate through the gaps. This bending effect causes the light to split into different colours of the spectrum, including red, blue, and green.
Opals with red or fire play of colour are known to be more valuable than those with the green or blue play of colour.
- Pattern
Another factor to consider when valuing your opals is “pattern”. When we say pattern, we refer to the sizes, shapes, and flakes of colours shown in your opals’ play of colour. Today, true Harlequin opal is the rarest pattern and this explains why it’s the most valuable of all opal patterns. Other excellent opal patterns include flagstone, ribbon, straw, picture stones, and Chinese writing.
Pinfire, floral, broad flash, and rolling flash are categorized as good opal patterns while grass and moss are very poor patterns.
- Brilliance
Brilliance means the brightness and clarity of the colours of your opals when viewed face-up. They are categorized into three different groups, brilliant, bright, and subdued. Subdued or dull opals are less valuable while brilliant opals are very valuable.
- Faults
Faults can always lower the value of your opal earrings and rings. A good example of opal faults is “cracks.” It’s simple; having a crack in the face of your opal can render your gemstone worthless.
Other types of opal faults include crazing, inclusions of minerals, such as sand, windows, potch lines, and webbing. In most cases, your opal value will remain the same with sandstone inclusions.
Wrapping up
Now that you understand how to value opals, you can start shopping on Masterpiece Jewellery for your preferred products. On this platform, we have different types of opal earring studs, pendants, engagement rings, and earrings. These products are available at different prices based on their play of colours, brilliance, pattern, class, and body tones. Speak to our representatives today to learn more about our new opal gemstone jewellery arrivals and their values.
